Clean cookstove project in Africa has Canadian ties

Ugandan Cookstove Project Announced by Offsetters

June 7, 2011, Vancouver, BC – Offsetters, a Vancouver-based carbon management solutions provider, is proud to announce that it is the first Canadian company to co-develop a high-quality cookstove offset project in Africa.

Offsetters’ project seeks to distribute thousands of new, clean burning cookstoves to Ugandan households over the next five years, which will have the equivalent effect of removing approximately 4,000 cars off the road for a year. However, perhaps more importantly, the cookstoves have health benefits that can save the lives of people who are simply trying to cook their daily meals. 

“The results of co-developing such an internationally valuable project that ties into a basic, daily human need to cook and feed oneself, in relation to climate change, are enormous,” said James Tansey, CEO and founder of Offsetters. “From reducing environmental impact and potentially improving physical health to reducing wood collecting and cooking time, these cookstoves will change the way the Ugandan people live their lives.

Offsetters also specifically set out to co-develop a project that is accepted for registration by the voluntary Gold Standard. The Gold Standard is the world's leading independent standard for creating high-quality emission reductions projects, and was designed to ensure that carbon credits are not only real and verifiable but that they make measurable contributions to sustainable development worldwide.

According to the World Health Organization, smoke from dirty cookstoves and fires kills almost 2 million people each year, most of them women and children. Three billion people live in homes where food is cooked on stoves or over fires burning fuels like wood, dung, charcoal, or agricultural waste. These fuels produce toxic fumes, and in poorly ventilated homes, the mix of chemicals can reach 200 times the level that the EPA considers safe to breathe. It can cause lung cancer, pneumonia, cataracts, low birth weight, even death.  It kills more than twice as many people as malaria, and the need for cookstoves is gaining international attention and endorsement from influencers like U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

“It’s such an honour to be a part of this important project. Without carbon offset funds, the new stoves would be too expensive for most households and institutions,” said Tansey. “Our offsets purchasers will feel confident in investing in this humanitarian project – our team has a proven track record of success, strong financial backing and an experienced co-development team.”

The new cookstoves used in Offsetters’ project employs improved combustion efficiency technology to reduce cooking time and wood use by approximately 50 per cent while providing a substantial cost savings per year.  Another benefit  is that these new stoves will free up more time for the Ugandan people – women and children in Ugandan typically spend up to 20 hours a week searching for fuel – and allow them to pursue other activities like earning  money and furthering their education.

About Offsetters
Offsetters is a leading carbon management solutions provider based in Vancouver, BC, helping individuals and companies understand, reduce and offset their climate impact. In 2009, Offsetters was selected as the first ever official supplier of carbon offsets in the history of the Olympic movement for the Vancouver 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games. In 2009 Offsetters was also selected by the Pacific Carbon Trust as the largest initial supplier of carbon offsets to the BC Crown Corporation. Founded in 2005, Offsetters invests in high-quality projects that achieve tangible reductions in greenhouse gas emissions that have happened with its involvement.

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Media Contacts:
Melanie Wong, Offsetters: 604-699-2652 or melanie@offsetters.ca  
Deirdre Campbell, Tartan Group: 250-592-3838, 250-882-9199 (cell) or deirdre@tartangroup.ca